Deceptaloid are a post metal duo from Iowa and North Carolina. Bassist Jon DePue is from North Carolina and multi-instrumentalist Will Burnett is based in Des Moines. Their latest album “Lost and Found” is full of great riffs from Burnett and nimble bass work from DePue. The album really is a mixed bag for me.

On the plus side, DePue is a GREAT bassist and there’s damn good reason this is not a solo project. His bass lines are very melodic and at the same time keep the bottom in place. Burnett knows how to write a really good riff and this album is really full of them. The opening track “Bluff” has a Scale the Summit sorta vibe to it, while “Terminus” has a really good organ sound that I like. I even enjoy the whacked out pseudo country jam of “Iron Cowboy” which sounds like “Bonanza” or something. Probably my favorite track.

There are a few things that I really don’t like. Programmed drums are driving me CRAZY. I hate them! The problem with these is that they are almost always dragging behind the riffs. Plus there are no fills to speak of. It basically negates all the fire power that the songs should have.

The other issue is the occasional “vocal” on some of the songs. Everyone seems to be in love with vocoders again. I really have no clue why, as they just mask bad vocals. “Withholding” is a track undermined by a vocoder and harsh vocals. Not everyone can do a harsh vocal. The ones on “Lost and Found” tend to be very atonal with no depth to them. Plus they seem really out of place with the music. “Imbalance” starts out great before the vocals show up late to end the party.

I think enough people out there could give a shit about programmed drums. If you are one of those people and aren’t too picky about vocals, Deceptaloid are certainly worth checking out. For me, it’s just a shame that all of these good riffs don’t get to truly shine as much as they deserve.

Rating: 6.5/10

Bandcamp: deceptaloid.bandcamp.com